Yesterday I decided to get out for a walk. The weather has been very rainy, so it's hit and miss for days that the weather cooperates in the 3 hours I have before work. It also occurred to me that Dexter should be able to sit in his stroller without using the carseat. (We bought a "travel system" which is where the carseat fits into the stroller.) It took a little bit before I figured out how to set up the stroller so he could sit in it. I despise instructions, so I just winged it which often times gets me into trouble. It took probably twice as long as it should have, but we finally got out and about. He loved being able to look out and even coo'd a bit because he was so excited. That's 99% of the reason he likes the Baby Bjorn, but I've been having trouble with my back, so I can only carry him in it for around an hour before it's too much. The stroller will let walk for much longer periods as long as it stops freaking raining. Hopefully I can just get a rain cover for the stroller, so a little drizzle won't prevent us from getting out.
While I was out he started shaking his head - like saying "no". I was going over some semi-rough terrain at the time, so at first I thought it was just jiggling him too much, but when I stopped he didn't stop shaking his head. He liked the feeling and keeps doing it. I don't think he knows that it means "no", but he will soon enough.
We always go through Golden Gate Park because it's just a block away. I got to survey all the damage to the trees from the strong winds last Friday. The park is still filled with a lot of debris, but it's being cleaned up. There are big piles here and there. I think the windstorm is mother nature's way of pruning all the trees because the park trees never looked so clean and gorgeous.
I stopped by this fantastic playground called Koret's Children's Quarter. It was recently reopened after over a million dollar renovation. It unlike any playground I've ever seen. It has concrete sculpted waves and a sand box that that looks like it's by a tide pool. It has a fountain and 2 giant jungle gyms. They kept some concrete slides that were built I think in the 1920's. To top it off, there's also a carousel. A huge indoor beautiful carousel that's right beside the playground. It's a kid's paradise. I can't wait for Dexter to old enough to play there.
I don't ever want to leave our neighborhood. I love it so much, but it's so unaffordable to buy. Single family homes are always over a million, so that leaves flats which are not much bigger than apartments and while they are under a million, it's not usually by much. We'll have been in the same apartment for 4 years in a couple months. That's twice as long as we've ever stayed anywhere else. Our roots are growing in this neighborhood with our office just being around the corner. I'm hoping for a good year at our company. That's the only way we'll be able to stay. We'll have to move soon to give Dexter his own room. I'm not too wild about having a toddler sleeping in the same room as us.
